Chef Direct will serve major foodservice customers from a new distribution centre based in Didcot, Oxfordshire.
The new business will combine Booker’s scale and logistics capabilities with the company’s Ritter Couri-vaud’s expertise in catering and speciality foods. Chef Direct opens for new business from March and Didcot will be operational in June.
Mark Aylwin, managing director of Booker Direct, said: “Chef Direct will become the new force in foodservice. For years, two players have dominated food service in the UK. Catering chains have been looking for more choice and Chef Direct will meet this need.”
The company’s Booker Direct team will run Chef Direct. Current customers of Booker Direct include Enterprise Inns, Vue and Marks & Spencer.
The company saw total sales increase by 7% in the 16 weeks to 30 December 2011 compared with the same period last year. Fruit and vegetable sales were up 17%.
The company is also trialling a shop of premium chefs’ ingredients from Ritter-Courivaud at its Brighton site.
In addition, Booker has announced the opening of two new stores Mumbai in India early in 2012.